Rotor launching toy

ABSTRACT

D R A W I N G A TOY WHICH FACILITATES THE LAUNCHING OF A LARGE ROTOR, COMPRISING AN ELONGATED FRAME WITH A LAUNCHING END HAVING A DRIVE DOG FOR RECEIVING THE ROTOR AND AN OPERATING END WHERE A HANDLE IS LOCATED THAT CAN BE PULLED BY A CHILD TO ROTATE THE DRIVE DOG AND LAUNCH THE ROTOR. THE AXIS OF THE DRIVE DOG IS ANGLED AWAY FROM THE VERTICAL SO THAT THE ROTOR WILL NOT HIT A CHILD AT THE OPERATING END. THE LAUNCHING MECHANISM INCLUDES A CABLE HAVING ONE END NORMALLY WOUND AROUND A SPOOL FIXED TO THE DRIVE DOG, AND AN OPPOSITE END EXTENDING THROUGH THE FRAME TO THE OPERATING END, WHERE IT IS ATTACHED TO A HANDLE. A CHILD LAUNCHES A ROTOR BY PLACING HIS FEET ON A PAIR OF FOOT RESTS AT THE OPERATING END OF THE FRAME, AND PULLING UP ON THE HANDLE WHICH IS ATTACHED TO THE CABLE.

p 20, 1971 E. J. KILROY, JR 3,605,328

ROTOR LAUNCHING TOY 7 Filed Dec. 10. 1969 z Sheets-Sheet 1 A vin rm? a, W WM P 20, 1971 E. J. KILROY, JR 3,605,328

ROTOR LAUNCHING TOY iffI/Vil United States Patent 3,605,328 ROTOR LAUNCHING TOY Eugene J. Kilroy, Jr., Inglewood, Calif., assiguor to Mattel, Inc., Hawthorne, Calif. Filed Dec. 10, 1969, Ser. No. 883,862 Int. Cl. A63b 27/00 U.S. Cl. 46-83 4 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A toy which facilitates the launching of a large rotor, comprising an elongated frame with a launching end having a drive dog for receiving the rotor and an operating end where a handle is located that can be pulled by a child to rotate the drive dog and launch the rotor. The axis of the drive dog is angled away from the vertical so that the rotor will not hit a child at the operating end. The launching mechanism includes a cable having one end normally wound around a spool fixed to the drive dog, and an opposite end extending through the frame to the operating end, where it is attached to a handle. A child launches a rotor by placing his feet on a pair of foot rests at the operating end of the frame, and pulling up on the handle which is attached to the cable.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION (1) Field of the invention This invention relates to toy launching apparatus.

(2) Description of the prior art Rotor launching toys, which include a frame held by a child and a string which the child can pull to rotate a rotor that thereafter flies into the air, are popular toys. Such toys have generally been limited to the launching of small rotors, because a child cannot apply large amounts of force. Larger rotors can be more entertaining because they give a child a sense of greater power if he can launch them, and because they can perform better aerodynamically.

OBJECTS AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a rotor toy which can be easily and safely operated by a child.

Another object is to provide a simple and economical rotor launching mechanism.

In accordance with one embodiment of the invention, a rotor toy is provided which enables a child to safely launch a large rotor so that it flies high into the air. The apparatus includes a launcher having an elongated frame with a launching end from which the rotor is launched and an opposite operating end where a child applies forces that rotate the rotor. A drive dog is rotatably mounted on the launching end, about an axis which is angled away from the vertical to direct the rotor away from a child at the operating end. A cable is provided which has an inner end normally wound about a spool that is attached to the drive dog and an outer end fixed to a handle at the operating end. A child launches a rotor by stepping on a pair of foot rests at the operating end and pulling up on the handle. As the handle is pulled, the cable unwinds from the spool, rapidly rotating the rotor until it flies into the air. When the child releases the handle, a spring coupled to the spool turns it to rewind the cable on the spool.

A rotor for use with the launcher has a hub portion and several blades that radiate from it. The hub portion includes a transparent dome for covering a figure that may be held on the hub, so that the rotor appears to be a flying saucer carrying an alien being. The blades of the rotor extend with a downward incline from the 3,605,328 Patented Sept. 20, 1971 hub to make the dome and figure enclosed therein more apparent, to thereby provide a better appearance. The downward incline of the blade is also believed to provide better aerodynamic performance.

The novel features of the invention are set forth with particularity in the appended claims. The invention will be best understood from the following description when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a rotor toy constructed in accordance with the invention, showing a child in the act of launching a rotor;

FIG. 2 is a view taken on the line 22 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a bottom perspective view of the rotor of the apparatus of FIG. 1;-

FIG. 4 is a view taken on the line 4-4 of FIG. 2; and

FIG. 5 is a side view showing the rotor and drive dog at the moment of rotor launching therefrom.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIG. 1 shows the manner in which a child 10 can operate a launcher 12 constructed in accordance with the invention, to launch a rotor 14 into the air. The launcher includes a frame 16 with a launching end 18 from which the rotor is launched, an operating end 20 where forces are applied that launch the rotor, and connecting portion 22 which connects the launching and operating ends. A child operates the launcher by stepping on a pair of foot rests 24, 26 at the operating end of the frame, and pulling up on a handle 28 at the operating end. As the handle 28 is pulled up, it pulls a cable 30 which extends through the frame to a mechanism at the launching end which spins the rotor 14. When the rotor 14 spins rapidly, its blades 32 lift it into the air. The force which even a child can apply with his legmuscles in lifting up the handle 28, is sufficient to rapidly rotate even a large rotor so that it flies high into the air in a highly entertaining manner.

As shown in FIG. 2, the launching mechanism includes a drive dog 34 fixed to a shaft 36 that is rotatably mounted on the launching end of the frame at bearings 38, 40 thereon. The drive dog 34 can engage a rotor dog 42 which is fixed to the rotor, to serve as driving means that rotate it. A spool 44 which is fixed to the shaft, holds an inner end 31 of the cable. The cable extends from the spool through a grommet 46, along the connecting portion 22 of the frame, and around a pulley 48 that is rotatably mounted on the launching end of the frame. The pulley 48 diverts the cable from a horizontal to a generally vertical direction, and it passes through a grommet 50 and to the handle 28, the outer end 33 of the cable being fixed to the handle.

When a child pulls up on the handle 28, causing the cable to unwind from the spool 44, the cable rapidly turns the spool and the drive dog 34 which is rotatably coupled to it, to rotate the rotor 14 and launch it. After the cable has been pulled, it must be rewound onto the spool. Rewinding is accomplished by a spring which is held in a spring holder 52. As shown in FIG. 4, a coil spring 54 is utilized which has an outer end 56 fixed with respect to the frame of the apparatus, and an inner end 58 which is fixed to a collar 60 that is fixed to the shaft 36. When the shaft turns in the direction of arrow 62 during launching of a rotor, the spring 54 winds up. When tension on the cable is released, the spring turns the shaft in the opposite direction to rewind the cable onto the spool 44. The spool 44 forms a thread for accurately locating the cable turns thereon, to minimize the possibility of jamming and to reduce friction. It should be understood that the apparatus will operate without threads on a spool, and the spool can merely be a portion of the shaft which acts as a spool.

The axis of rotation of the drive dog 34 is angled away from the vertical, with a directional component away from the foot rests 24 where holding forces are received to hold down the frame and away from the handle 28 where operating forces are applied to rotate the drive dog. The reason for this is to direct the rotor 14 away from a child operating the launcher. This angling of the axis of rotation of the drive dog allows even a large rotor to be safely launched from a. launcher wherein a childs head is located above the level of the rotor. The drive dog also must be located a substantial distance, such as at least one foot, from the position of a child operating the mechanism to make sure that the rotor clears him. The fact that the childs head can safely be above the rotor enables the use of a compact mechanism which allows a child to use his leg muscles to pull the handle so that a large force can be applied.

FIG. illustrates the manner in which the drive dog 34 launches the rotor. As soon as a child begins to pull on the handle, the drive dog 34 turns the rotor dog 42 to rotate the rotor. After the rotor achieves a small rotational speed, it tends to lift off the drive dog. This cannot be allowed to happen, because the rotor will not have sufficient rotational speed to rise far into the air. Accordingly, the drive dog is provided with an engaging surface 64 which is angled by angle A away from a simple circumferential direction. The angle A is chosen so that upward pull on the rotor results in sufficient friction to prevent upward movement. 50 long as the surface 64 is in contact with the corresponding rotor dog surface 66, the rotor dog cannot lift off the drive dog. The drive dog continues to rotate the rotor so long as the drive dog is continuing to increase the speed of the rotor. When the drive dog begins to slow in rotational speed, the rotor surface 66 moves away from the drive dog surface 64 and the rotor quickly lifts olf the drive dog. The rotor generally has sulficient speed so that it climbs high into the air.

The rotor 14 has a hub 68, nine blades 32 that radiate from the hub, and a pair of bracing rings 70, 72 that connect radially outer portions of the blades together. In order to enhance the entertainment value of the toy, a pair of lugs 74, 76, shown in FIG. 2, are provided on the hub 68, to hold a figure 78 on the hub. The figure 78 represents a strange creature, such as one might expect in an imaginary flying saucer. A transparent domeshaped cover 80 is provided which fits over the hub to enclose the creature. The relatively large rotor 14 which may have a diameter of about one foot, enables the carrying of a figure 78 of substantial size. The provision of numerous blades 32 makes the rotor look somewhat like a fiying saucer, and this combined with the carrying of an encapsulated figure, provides the appearance of a flying saucer piloted by an alien being.

The blades 32 of the rotor do not extend straight out from the hub, but instead, extend with a downward incline of about 15". This enhances the appearance of the rotor, by making the hub and capsule and creature thereon more apparent and by appearing to give such a creature greater visibility, to see where it is landing. The downward incline of the blades 32 is also believed to aid in the aerodynamic performance of the rotor, by creating an air cushion under it when it is close to the ground, to help support it above the ground.

Thus, the invention provides a simple launching mechanism which can be used by a child to launch a large rotor into the air. The launcher enables a child to utilize his strong leg muscles so that he can provide large power to rapidly launch a large rotor. This high performance is achieved with safety by angling the rotor driving means away from the vert cal in a direction away from the child, and by providing an elongated frame for separating the child from the rotor by a substantial distance such as more than one foot. The rotor which is used includes a capsule for holding a toy figure in the manner of a flying saucer to provide added entertainment. The blades of the rotor are angled downwardly to provide greater apparent visibility for a creature held on the rotor, and to increase the aerodynamic performance.

Although particular embodiments of the invention have been described and illustrated herein, it is recognized that modifications and variations may readily occur to those skilled in the art, and, consequently it is intended that the claims be interpreted to cover such modifications and equivalents.

What is claimed is:

1. Apparatus for launching a toy rotor comprising:

a frame having a launching end, an operating end, and

a connecting portion extending between said ends, said operating end having foot rest means;

drive means for turning said rotor to launch it, said drive means rotatably mounted on said frame at said launching end thereof;

a spool rotatably mounted on said frame at said launching end thereof and coupled to said drive means to turn it;

spring means for urging said spool to rotate in a direction opposite to the direction in which it turns to launch said rotor;

cable means having an inner portion normally wound about said spool, a portion extending between said ends of said frame, and an outer portion;

means at said operating end of said frame for guiding said cable means in a generally upward direction; and

a handle coupled to said outer portion of said cable means, whereby to enable a child to pull up to launch a rotor.

2. The apparatus described in claim 1 wherein:

said blades extend with a downward incline from said hub when said rotor is level.

3. Apparatus for launching a toy rotor comprising:

a frame having a launching end, an operating end, and a connecting portion extending between said ends, said operating end having foot rest means, said frame being constructed to lie on the ground;

drive means for turning said rotor to launch it, said drive means rotatably mounted on said frame at said launching end thereof, said drive means being rotatable about an axis which is angled away from the vertical in a direction away from said operating end of said frame;

a spool rotatably mounted on said frame at said launching end thereof and coupled to said drive means to turn it;

spring means for urging said spool to rotate in a direction in which it turns to launch said rotor;

cable means having an inner portion normally wound about said spool, a portion extending between said ends of said frame, and an outer portion;

means at said operating and of said frame for guiding said cable means in a generally upward direction; and

a handle coupled to said outer portion of said cable means, whereby to enable a child to pull up to launch a rotor.

4. Apparatus for launching a toy rotor comprising:

a frame having a launching end, an operating end, and a connecting portion extending between said ends, said operating end having foot rest means;

drive means for turning said rotor to launch it, said drive means rotatably mounted on said frame at said launching end thereof;

a spool rotatably mounted on said frame at said launching end thereof and coupled to said drive means to turn it;

spring means for urging said spool to rotate in a direction opposite to the direction in which it turn to launch said rotor;

cable means having an inner portion normally wound about said spool, a portion extending between said ends of said frame, and an outer portion;

means at said operating end of said frame for guiding said cable means in a generally upward direction;

a handle coupled to said outer portion of said cable means, whereby to enable a child to pull up to launch a rotor; and

a rotor for reception on said drive means, said rotor having a hub, a plurality of blades radiating from said hub, and a transparent capsule on said hub for enclosing a figure on said hub.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 32,272 5/1861 Benton 46'83 368,909 8/ 1887 Crowson 4683 945,934 1/1910 Gilmore 4682X 1,138,401 5/1915 Olmstead 4683 1,802,386 4/ 1931 Kline 46-83 U.S. Cl. X.R. 

